


i have vanquished that angel of sleep

by Ssilvs



Series: Nocturnal Collection [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Cryptids, F/M, anyway, forest creatures - Freeform, like pretty blink and you’ll miss it, sorry i just didnt feel like writing a whole romance, the jersey devil?, the sheith is implied
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:26:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23557537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ssilvs/pseuds/Ssilvs
Summary: It had been approximately three months since Keith had moved out into the woods in the middle of Bumblefuck, Nowhere, population 6,003, and he had decided that everything everyone has ever told him about small town life was wrong.When he quit his job and announced he was leaving New York for the safety of his recently late, estranged uncle’s cabin, all his coworkers had cooed and told him what a good change the quiet there would be from city life. Three months in and he knew, without a doubt, that the woods were never silent and it was never a good thing when they were.
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Series: Nocturnal Collection [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1695544
Kudos: 15





	i have vanquished that angel of sleep

**Author's Note:**

> you know that one tiktok challene (?) where you stay awake for 100 hours? i’ve decided to partake and need something to occupy myself during all that time. my solution? to write a short story for every line of “Nocturnal Collection” by Pablo Neruda based off whatever i immediately associate with my chosen fragment.
> 
> “i have vanquished that angel of sleep” - dust, lingering daylight, a dark forest. 
> 
> PLEASE tell me if there are any formatting/grammar/spelling mistakes. this is my first time posting anything here (!!) & i wrote this in the notes app of my phone approx. 1 hour ago lol

It had been approximately three months since Keith had moved out into the woods in the middle of Bumblefuck, Nowhere, population 6,003, and he had decided that everything everyone has ever told him about small town life was wrong.

When he quit his job and announced he was leaving New York for the safety of his recently late, estranged uncle’s cabin, all his coworkers had cooed and told him what a good change the quiet there would be from city life. Three months in and he knew, without a doubt, that the woods were never silent and it was never a good thing when they were.

He said as much in a Skype call back to Lance and Hunk, the two, albeit reluctant, friends he kept in touch with from the city. Honestly, he probably wouldn’t have stayed in contact with them if not for Hunk’s insistence on weekly calls, even when Keith didn’t pick up.

“You need me to pay a visit and check on you? Sounds like the solitude’s getting to you.” Lance flicked an imaginary speck of dust off his cuticle and shot Keith a shit-eating grin. It made Keith wish they were talking in person just so he could knock it off his face.

“Quit it, Lance. I’m not saying that the Jersey Devil is leaving me love notes, I’m just saying that... you know.”

Lance quirked a perfectly plucked eyebrow. “No, I don’t know, mullet. And you sound crazy.”

Keith furrowed his eyebrows and opened his mouth to respond but Hunk beat him to it.

“Sorry to interrupt and all, except for how I am totally not sorry, but, like, should we be concerned? Seriously, man, just thinking about living alone in the woods freaks me out.” Hunk gave a little full-body shudder and shook his head. “And that weird little town you’re in now? Oh man, you could cut the tension with a knife when we helped you move in. Everyone there was just so... weird! You’d think they’d never seen anyone new come into town before!” Hunk punctuated his rant with a wild gesture and Lance nodded emphatically.

“Oh yeah, it’s total creep central there, buddy. You just say the word and the Lancey-Lance will be there to save the day.” Lance waggled his eyebrows in a way that Keith supposed he thought was attractive.

Keith shook his head at both of them. “It’s not that serious, guys. Just some weird noises and a feeling, I guess. And not everyone’s that bad here.“

“A feeling? Now you _really_ sound crazy, Mullet.”

Keith just sighed. Before he could open his mouth to respond, the world around him went quiet and he tensed. From where he was sitting in his kitchen, he had a clear view through the window to his front porch. Something was out there, just standing in front of the steps.

If he squinted, he could just make out the creature’s figure through the scant moonlight streaming through the trees and he could tell it wasn’t a deer—at least, he didn’t think deer typically stood on two legs.

“Keith? You still there, buddy? Oh man, I _knew_ I should have upgraded his internet while we there.” Hunk chewed on his lip, worry creasing his brow as Keith ignored both him and Lance talking to him, eyes fixated on a point beyond the computer screen.

Keith snapped back to the screen. “I’ve gotta go, guys. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” With that, he quickly shut his computer before either of them could get a word in edgewise.

Quietly, he crept closer to the window. He couldn’t remember if he had locked the front door. The thing was still just standing there. As he got closer, he saw that the creature was standing with its back to the door, looking out into the woods beyond his property line. It was almost as if it was guarding the property, strange as that seemed. The sound of a twig snapping cut through the silence and his still guard tensed. Its ears seemed to pivot left while its head stayed facing forwards.

Now crouching low, just his eyes peering out over the window’s ledge to avoid being seen, Keith saw another figure emerge from the woods, this one impossibly bigger than his guard.

The newcomer lingered along the property, pacing its length. The figure standing in front of his porch angled himself to be directly facing the other and let loose a growl that Keith could hear even from twenty feet away.

He could just make out the interloper’s lips (Lips? Keith honestly couldn’t tell if it had what would pass for a normal mouth.) curling, its body sinking lower and kicking dirt back with one misshapen, almost goat-like, leg, before it suddenly launched itself forward. It seemed to move without even touching the ground as if suspended from the sky by some invisible string.

The figure standing guard in front of his porch didn’t even flinch—all he had to do was raise his hand and the opposing figure fell as if his strings had been cut, and crumbled to dust. And his guard stood still again.

Unwillingly, Keith let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding and drew his strange guard’s attention.  
Its head whipped around to face him, feature bathed in the light of the rising sun. Keith blinked at the sudden wash of light. He hadn’t realized he had sat there watching the whole night; it had hardly felt like an hour. With the sudden rush of light, Keith could take in the pale stretch of scar over the nose of the creature’s face, its tangle of black and white hair, and the jagged horns cresting above its forehead.  
Keith couldn’t really see for the light blinding his eye, but he could almost swear that it smiled at him before walking off into the woods from where it had come.


End file.
